Shadow

November 06, 2013

O LORD, what is man, that You take knowledge of him? Or the son of man, that You think of him? Man is like a mere breath; His days are like a passing shadow. Psalm 144:3-4

I had been tinkering around with a melody and, as usual, just starting singing whatever words came to mind. I didn’t have a specific direction I wanted to take the song, but the words from Psalm 144 began to weave their way in. And while the phrase “who is man that You would aim Your thoughts toward him?” might not have the most natural wording, it stuck.

Next came the verses... in general, verses take more intentionality. I had set aside some time to spend in Key Largo looking for some inspiration. I wanted to create a picture of the wretchedness of man and the holiness of God, and how in spite of both factors of the equation, God still loves man.

It’s the conundrum found in Romans 5:7-8

“For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.…”

Mix that in with the God of all eternity caring after something that lasts for only a moment... what kind of love is that?! It’d be like a successful CEO of a multi-billion dollar company taking interest in and loving a gastrotrich. What’s a gastrotrich? Exactly.

The goal of this song is to not wallow in our short, here-today-gone-tomorrow life of helplessness... but to recognize the state we’re in and marvel at God’s eternal love for us despite our depravity. The God who has seen everything great and small, who existed before there was time, and who will still be on His throne of highest dominion after everything crumbles... yes, that God sees us. Even more, He loves us and is interested in us. And even more than that, He can identify with everything we feel. He wants to be involved in our lives. He wants to carry our burdens. He wants to be our joy.

How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God! How vast is the sum of them! - Psalm 139:17

(Okay. I had to look it up myself... but a gastrotrich is a microscopic, worm-like marine animal with a lifespan of approximately 3 days... silly image, maybe, but it gives some perspective)

Comments

Ramsey November 07, 2013 @09:09 pm

Good word Grace! Always a good thing when someone big pays attention to someone little. Your song brings God's grace out beautifully and i like the way you let Scripture be recognizable in your songs. Get the CD folks and get blessed!